Connect to Council

Point Ritchie, or in Aboriginal language, Moyjil, is the rocky headland at the mouth of the Warrnambool’s Hopkins River.

For thousands of years Aboriginal people visited the area to gather food including eels from the river and shellfish from the ocean.

A record of this extended period of human occupation is preserved in the rocks and in the sand dunes of Point Ritchie and in recent years traditional owners and scientists have worked together to help tell the story of this site, which is recognised as having great heritage significance.

In 2013 the site was placed on the Victorian Aboriginal Heritage Register and recevied an Ongoing Protection Declaration from the State Government.

The area is managed by Warrnambool City Council in consultation with the Point Ritchie Project Committee comprising traditional owners, researchers and representatives from the Council and State Government departments including the Office of Aboriginal Affairs Victoria.

A video and website – moyjil.com.au - dedicated to telling the story of Point Richie (Moyjil) have been produced as an initiative of the Point Ritchie Project Group.

A Conservation Management Plan for the site is also nearing completion and will be released in coming months.

The Point Ritchie Project Group and Warrnambool City Council are now seeking feedback on a proposal to have a dual name for the site: Point Ritchie / Moyjil.

“The proposed dual name, Point Ritchie / Moyjil, will help provide a more public acknowledgement and celebration of the site’s heritage,” Warrnambool City Council Coordinator City Sustainability Travis Riches said.

Submissions or comments on the proposal are invited from interested groups, bodies and members of the general public.

Submissions can be sent to to Warrnambool City Council, PO Box 198, 3280, or alternatively emailed by clicking here.